Letter of the week: Fining people based on income makes a mockery of the law

People should be judged and punished equally regardless of financial status, racial status, political status, or any other status or factor that we use to differentiate ourselves from one another (

Follow Finland’s example and fine speedsters based on their income,

March 9). If justice is blind, the law needs to be applied equally to all that fall under that law.

It is easy to suggest this example, but how would this be managed? Does a judge have to ask for an income statement before issuing a penalty?

Would it be based on the vehicle you are driving at the moment? What if you are not driving your own vehicle at that moment? Would this mean that lower-income or poor people may pay no fees for speeding?

If you want to put a value on people’s worth, the same can be used for incarceration for other offences. A high-salary individual could lose over $10,000 for a one-month stay in prison, while someone who earns minimum wages will lose maybe hundreds. Should the poorer earner get a sentence five times longer to be on a par with the wealthy?

The penalty should be the same for everyone. A judge can raise fines based on multiple motor vehicle violations, so there is already a way that fines can be raised, if needed.

Fines have set prices. We are all supposed to be seen as equal under the law. To give somebody a larger fine because they make more money is, factually, a harsher punishment and not a punishment for the traffic violation, but a punishment for having more money.

What other countries do does not mean Singapore should follow blindly in the hope of finding quick-fix solutions. Much depends on how a solution can suit Singapore’s context and population. Ultimately, there are no shortcuts to improving the way we do things.

Sim Joo Geok